A James City County man faces voter fraud and forgery charges after authorities say he attempted to cast two ballots: his own and that of his dead wife.

Richard Dohmen, 68, was charged with forgery and uttering of an attestation, and election fraud via false statement, according to a criminal complaint filed in the Williamsburg-James City County General District Court.

On Oct. 24 at 2:23 p.m., the James City County Voter Registrar’s office called the James City County Police Department to request an investigation into an allegedly fraudulent absentee voter application, according to court documents.

An officer visited Dohmen’s home, court documents said, and Dohmen told the officer he had no knowledge of the absentee voting application.

The officer received Dohmen’s deceased wife’s voter registration card and the absentee voting application filled in her name from the general registrar’s office, according to court documents. The signatures on the two pieces of paper were dissimilar.

The officer then compared the two absentee voting applications’ signatures and noticed they were substantially similar, court documents said.

When the officer returned to Dohmen’s home, Dohmen told him he had filled out the absentee ballot in his dead wife’s name to cast a second vote during the election, according to court documents.

Dohmen was charged and turned himself into the Virginia Peninsula Regional Jail on Nov. 1, according to James City County Police Department spokeswoman Stephanie Williams.

Roberts can be reached at 757-604-1329, by email at srobertsjr@vagazette.com and on Twitter @SPRobertsJr.